


Strength

by Moonwanderer



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Blood and Injury, Blood and Torture, BruceWhump, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Hurt, Hurt Bruce, Hurt Thor (Marvel), Injury, M/M, Nothing too explicit, Pain, Science Bros, Team Dynamics, ThunderScience - Freeform, Whump, mention of past child abuse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-14
Updated: 2018-08-18
Packaged: 2019-06-10 02:36:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,652
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15281703
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Moonwanderer/pseuds/Moonwanderer
Summary: Thor gets hurt during a mission and the Team finds out not only the Hulk is strong.





	1. When all your strength has gone...

**Author's Note:**

  * For [AutumnSwitch](https://archiveofourown.org/users/AutumnSwitch/gifts).



> I gift this work to AutumnSwitch who is so sweet and supportive about my little stories.
> 
> I edited this, because I've got more ideas, and love to torture the characters, so instead of 2, there will be 4 chapters in total.  
> This is probably the longest thing I've ever written in English and I am a little proud of it.  
> Can be seen as love or pure friendship, as you wish. One thing is sure: Team Dynamics.
> 
> I am not a native speaker, so mistakes may be found.  
> I do not own the characters, etc., etc.,...

Strength was a natural trait of the God of Thunder, and regarding his muscles, no one wondered why. The Hulk was strong of course, it was his mostly required and used ability, the one that everyone admired and feared. Bruce Banner, however, was famous for his brain and ideas, so no one really assumed, he could be more than a nerdy mind. No one, including Thor himself.

This mission was risky, and included a quite unstable interdimensional portal, and some kind of space demons. Good news: they received a warning before and could postpone the actual fight. Which was better than they thought, cause if it had happened out of nowhere, well, they would have been fucked. But like this, they had time to plan and prepare.

Bad news however: despite their best efforts, the portal remained unstable, completely relying on Thor’s asgardian magical presence and the gamma-energy emitting from Bruce, and only the two of them could endure the conditions on the other side. Last but not least, something in that place prevented him to hulk out, so he had to go there in his „fragile human form”.

Fortunately, it was Bruce they needed this time, brains and not the brawn. They- okay, Tony- made a little machine which put in the right place could end the invasion; and some other small, gamma-energy induced gadgets to help stabilizing the portal as long as possible.

So while Thor flew off to bring the machine to the required position, the scientist stayed beside the portal to postpone the collapse; and the others tried to handle the situation on their side.

There was one thing however, which came unpredicted for Bruce. It was the pain. At the moment the god and him stepped on the other side, he felt a rapidly growing pain surrounding his body and penetrating his mind.

Though he was in his original form, he could not trick the powers of this dimension, which for some unknown reasons protested against the Hulk’s presence and tried to get rid of it.

Thor was gone for almost an hour now and the pain was so intense he couldn’t decide to scream or to throw up. The Hulk was raging inside, demanding to flee, to be let out and God help him, if he could, he would have let him out by now.

He rubbed his temple and steadied his breath and tried to concentrate on the little gadget, which decided to stop working all of a sudden.

The comm in his ear started buzzing and Tony’s voice came into transmission, although quite raspy.

"Hey there, Big Guy! How’s the other side? I really don’t wanna rush you two, but it would be nice to put an end to this little adventure."

"I’ve lost Thor’s signal about twenty minutes ago, which means he reached the centre. He could be here..." He stopped and had to grip the ledge, as a sudden wave of agony hit his body. He barely heard his own voice because of the throbbing pain in his head. "Uh...could be here any minute now..."

"Brucey?...Are you okay, buddy?" Tony sounded worried and it was the last thing he needed now.

"I am fine, just stick to the plan and do what you can. You will hear about us, however things will turn out." His hands were shaking but his voice sounded calm as ever, although a little bit strained.

"Okay, Brucey bear, keep up with this positive attitude! It suits you better!"

The comm went silent and finally he could bring that little fucker back to life. The stabilizators were running low now, relying completely on his gamma-energy. If his friend won’t show up soon, they will all be...

His thoughts were interrupted by a blinding flash of light, and he felt relief overwhelming his battered mind as a familiar figure emerged from the lightning.

His relief turned into horror a moment later, when the god took a wobbly step forward and collapsed to the ground.

Bruce rushed to his side, abandoning his post, and as he reached for his friend to turn him on his back, his hands sinked into something warm and sticky. He pulled back, and saw red on his shaking fingers.

Thor groaned in pain and curled into a ball, clutching his side. There was a deep, gaping wound beneath his palms, with blood pouring from it slowly but steadily. His eyes were shut thigthly, lips pressed in a thin line, and colour draining from his face in a rapidly increasing pace.

For a moment, Bruce felt nothing but panic rising up in his chest, freezing his mind...

He almost screamed out, when the other grabbed his arm.

"The machine... I placed it where I should have..." Thor’s voice wavered as he spoke, his breathing uneven, face contorted in pain. "But the King...he stabbed me...I bound him but he is everywhere..."

The ground started to shake violently and Bruce threw himself over his fallen friend to protect him from the falling debris and other things that could hurt him more.

The shaking stopped as it started but there was an alarming tension in the air, filling his panicked mind with terror. A red light flared up on the stabilizators, signaling the limit of their capacity. Time was running out...

They had to get out of here immediately!

Just as this thought crossed his mind, Bruce felt a new wave of pain hitting his body, and he doubled over in agony. Everything felt too sharp, too loud, the screams in his head blinding and deafening him, until his grasping fingers bumped into a trembling body.

Suddenly, his vision cleared and he straightened up, ready to act.

Thor is hurt and bleeding and he needs his help.

He grabbed his friend, and the god opened his eyes.

"Banner..." Thor gasped, and blood began to trickle down the corner of his mouth. "My strength is leaving me... The portal could collapse in any moment. You need to get out of here!"

Though his voice was trembling with pain, those icy blue eyes held his gaze, begging him to run.

"Not without you!" Bruce said, and jumped to his feet. He leaned down then, and ignoring the weak protests, he lifted his friend into a fireman’s carry.

Just as he started to head towards the portal, a voice sliced into the air, hissing and dripping from malice.

"Pathetic mortals! You could bind me here and you could destroy my realm, but you won’t escape alive! Both of you will go down with me!"

Bruce ignored the voice, tried to ignore the pain, as he fought his way towards the flickering light. The weight of his friend lay heavy on his shoulders, and he felt the warmness of blood seeping into his clothes. His body screamed in protest and how he wanted just to lay down and die in silence, but Thor was not moving anymore, his breathing just pained, irregular gasps; so he gritted his teeth and carried on.

Maniac laughter filtered the air, and he let out a cry as a sudden stab of pain shot trough his chest. He fell onto his knees, seeing white, and the unconscious body started sliding off his shoulders.

The voice of his father was ringing in his ear, what a shame, what a disgrace, what a monster he was born, never intended to happen...

He heard his mother crying, her screams as she died protecting him...

The Hulk was rampaging inside, devouring the last bits of his sanity...

And where was this annoying, static noise coming from? It was stiffling another voice, without a face yet so familiar, frantically calling out his name...

He felt himself starting to fall forward, and he almost laughed at his slowly-ending, pathetic life...

Until there was a flash of blue in front of his eyes. He shot out one arm and steadied himself, a moment before hitting the ground. His vision cleared, and the screams faded down in his mind. He knew that voice and it was not coming from the past to haunt him in his last moments, but to warn him, to guide...

"Bruce!!! Bruce, what are you two doing? The portal is closing!!!! Where are you?"

Tony’s voice was filled with so much worry and love, and Bruce felt his body warming up with strength again. He stumbled on his feet, his teeth gritted, his eyes green.

As the ground was shaking, he kept his gaze fixed on the portal and his grip steady on Thor. Just a couple of steps, just a little more...

"You will never get out of here alive!" The DemonKing laughed and with a last flicker, the portal closed down.

They were trapped there, in a rapidly collapsing dimension.

Much to his own surprise, Bruce could stay calm. There was he with agonizing pain in his body and mind; an unconscious Thor with a bleeding wound on his friend's shoulders; a dying mad King bound to his fate; and a gamma-fueled portal right in front of them.

It was so damn easy, he felt himself smile.

He leaned against the wall of the gate, and with a right arm supporting Thor and with a knife in his left, he slashed his own neck deep and wide.

Warm blood splattered everywhere with crimson thickness, pulsatile, as the heartbeat.

He saw the portal opening up one more time, and he pushed the god through it, falling after him into unconsciousness.


	2. ...mine won't falter...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It was a long and hard work, but finally, here is chapter number two!  
> Thank You for your patience!

He woke up to an unmistakable, enclosed feeling. He was inside his own mind.

That means, somehow, Hulk was in charge now, but for a moment he couldn’t remember why. He had the feeling as if he was in a hurry, like he was missing something important. He tried to remember, to put the pieces together, but somehow he couldn’t. His thoughts were sooo slow, he had to struggle even for the tiniest bits of information, and it was weird, because trapped in mind and everything, he should have had at least a little bit of control. Oh how he wished he could just let it be like this and drift back to the unknown, but somehow he knew there was something crucial to stay awake for.

Something with Thor...

He struggled to be able to stay awake, to be able to think, if Hulk was out that means some kind of a danger, maybe a battle... How could someone think when his mind was this foggy and feeling lightheaded? Bruce knew this was not normal, not at all, and finally his efforts seemed to pay off. He assumed right, there was a battle. And he was with Thor...

And right know he was sure that the Hulk was badly drugged, because no other thing could make his brilliant mind feel like porridge.

And this meant trouble. Big, big trouble. A Ross-sized trouble, to be correct. Somehow Bruce was sure that man was behind of everything. And this made him struggle even more. He needed to stay awake. He needed to be clear and sharp. He needed to remember.

His mind started an emergency protocol and suddenly the memories came back flooding. The attack. The portal. Thor, lying on his shoulders, unmoving, bleeding. How he opened up the portal again. (He couldn’t help but shiver at the memory.) How they stumbled out of the other dimension, Bruce with his neck cut open, scaring the daylights out of Tony.

He paused then, frowning mentally. And after? There was about thirty seconds of pure terror, when he just lay on the ground, with his artery cut open, bleeding heavily, and with Tony arguing with someone nearby. Then he lost consciousness, and the Hulk could finally take over.

And then, for the first time, he could remember not only his, but the other guy’s memories too. When Hulk came to his senses, Tony was lying on the ground, unmoving, and that fucker stood above him with a rifle. He remembered the anger, hot and white, welling up, but as the other guy was about to lunge himself at Ross to rip him into pieces, they shot him down. And it must have been some hell of a tranquilizer to be able to keep the Hulk sedated this long.

He didn’t know how long he was out, but somehow he felt it wasn’t too long. His whole body was aching, and he still had the dull, throbbing pain in his head, but tried to concentrate on the facts instead.

Number one: Ross got him. Number two: he was in Hulk’s body now, and alone, somewhere. Number three: there is a high chance that Ross kidnapped not only him, but Thor and/or Tony too. And that made him worry and fear for their safety. The last time he saw them, Thor was unconscious and badly hurt, and Tony wore just the remains of his suit and there might be wounds he didn’t know about...

He had to do something, as quick as possible. God knows what that monster had in mind for his dear friends... One thing was sure, he had to regain control over himself.

He focused on the other guy, and he sensed fear and anger and confusion, the big body drugged and in chains, too weak to tear them apart. He spoke to him, as if he tried to calm a startled animal, tried to convince him he did his best, but right now Bruce is needed instead.

And soon he felt the change as muscles strained and shrunk, bones cracking, anger and hate retreating to the back of his mind. He found himself on his hands and knees, shivering and panting on the cold metal floor. The chains were heavy around his wrists and ankles, and they were way too wide now, forged for the size of the Hulk, and he shook them down, freeing his trembling limbs. He was inside a cage in a damp, cold room with some not too modern-looking panels on each side.

He staggered to his feet, weakness and pain making him dizzy, and stepped out of the cage, through the space between the bars. There were no signs of guards, or lab staff, every machine was shut down, and the place felt quiet. As if it was not the final destination just a place where they could retreat before moving to the original spot. „If I am correct,- Bruce thought, wrapping his arms around his shaking form -then they didn’t expect me to wake up this soon. They wanted to move on to a more secure, more protected place, where they could do anything they want. That means they were in a hurry, something disturbed their plan. This could be useful now. And maybe there are not too many of them here.”

He strode to the panels, but they were dark and seemed untouched, so he didn’t try to turn them on. He found a slightly used lab coat thrown aside, and put it on, a weak attempt to shield his body from the cold.

He was covered in bruises and a thin layer of sweat, the loss of blood making him dizzy and wobbly. Due to the lack of time and the drugs he received, his body couldn’t regenerate. His suspicion was proven right when he reached for the wound on his neck.

The cut on his artery was sealed but he could still feel the raw edges of the wound with his shaking fingers, and when he pushed them a little bit deeper, he could directly touch the pulsating veins. Bruce never had a weak stomach but this made him sick, and had to take a couple of deep breaths to fight off nausea. It didn’t help that his skin was covered in his own blood before, sticky and red. Bruce swallowed hard and tried to concentrate on other things instead. Like how to find his friends and get out of here without any further fuss, if possible.

So he pulled himself together and cautious as ever, stepped out of the door.

As soon as he looked around, he felt the familiar chill of dread creeping up his spine, raising the hair on the back of his neck. He knew this place well. He had been here before. Shivers shook his whole body as the memories of torture and illegal experiments flooded his mind. He doubled over, arms wrapped tightly around his shaking form, and he fought against the upcoming panic attack. Hulk was raging inside, demanding to set him free, to run, anywhere just as far as possible.

„You know we can’t" He whispered, rocking back and forth. "We have to find them. Thor and Tony, remember? It is a thing that Ross could hurt us, but we will never ever let him hurt our friends!”

When he heard the footsteps, it was too late to hide. The only thing he could do was stand up straight and brace himself for whoever was coming towards. As the figure appeared around the corner, he felt his blood run cold. The man stopped and looked at him in the eye.

It was General Ross himself.

The next ten seconds passed in dead silence. Bruce felt terror clawing at his heart at the sight of the dreaded man, but he found himself unable to move. The time seemed to stop between them, the air was heavy with fear... Fear? Despite the situation, Bruce felt a smile creep onto his face. He was not the only one who was afraid of the other, the general dreaded him too.

"How...? How is it possible?" The man said, eyes wide with shock, a stunned expression on his features. "You should be...!"

"I should be what? Asleep? Dead?" Bruce asked, stepping closer to the man, who took a step back quickly. Though he still was a little bit afraid inside (and to be honest, who wouldn’t be at the sight of his torturer), but he kept up the brave facade, the menacing grin never leaving his face. "Where are my friends?"

Ross swallowed hard, his fingers twitching to his side, before he realized he didn’t have his gun this time.

"They are not here."

"You’re lying!" The sentence came out as a growl, and the man in front of him flinched.

"Well... we’ve got that so called god here..."

"Where?"

"In the main lab, two floors above..."

"Don’t you ever think about calling for backup!" Bruce snarled at the man, who freezed. "Hand me the comm! And your pass card too! If you hope I don’t remember how this place works then it’s not your day."

He didn’t have the slightest idea how things have turned out to be this lucky for him, but somehow he, bloody, and battered and so damn exhausted, had the upper hand over General Ross, the man of his nightmares. He wouldn’t let this oppurtunity pass, he knew he had to act sharp and quickly.

With one hand he caught the objects thrown towards him, and took another step forward. This time the man didn’t step back, but he was still reeking with dread.

"And Tony? Where is he?"

"He is not here."

Bruce growled, eyes flaming up green.

"I’m telling the truth, I swear! I just knocked him out and left there!"

There was anger and fear in the general’s voice, but not lie. That means at least Tony was safe... Relief, even just the tiniest bit filled his heart, and that was enough to make him stagger. The mocking tone of the voice spoken put him off his thoughts.

"And so what, Dr. Banner? How can your big green buddy solve this problem now?"

Bruce ignored the stabbing pain in his neck as he raised his head to capture the other man’s gaze in an ice-cold glare.

"It’s bold of you to assume I need the Other Guy to take you down!"

And with a swift motion of his fist, he knocked the general out.

The journey back to the room with the cage to hide the unconscious body and then up to the main lab felt like a dream. Bruce knew that he was not regenerating, and in his current condition he was not supposed to do things like this, but somehow he managed to burst into the room without wasting a second.

The first thing he noticed was the sickly pale artificial light of the room, which was almost enough by itself to make him sick again. Then he saw his friend.

Thor was lying on a surgical bed inside of a glass capsule. His upper half was naked, a makeshift bandage covering his injury, an IV hooked in his right arm, and some opalescent fluid dripping down into his body in a frighteningly steady pace.

He rushed to the capsule, heart racing in a painful rhythm. He even dropped the comm half of the way, moments after he was able to reach the right wavelength so the team could find them. Next to him was a panel with too many buttons and lights and screens, so he ignored it and tried to think of something useful instead.

He didn’t want to hulk out and smash the glass, he didn’t know a thing about what kind of fluid Thor was getting, or how this goddamn capsule worked. So he tried, he really tried, and sooo hard, what Bruce Banner could do.

It was hopeless, the sight of his friend seemed to freeze his mind. Thor was paler then the covers, his golden hair seemed to shine in the dim light, features tight from pain in spite of being deep in unconsciousness. There was blood already on the bandages covering his side, and occasionally his body shuddered as if he was cold.

And Bruce Banner, one of the greatest minds in the 21th century, could do nothing but stare.

He didn’t have the slightest idea how long he was standing there, watching his friend helplessly, when a familiar voice broke the silence.

"And now what, Dr. Banner?"

And that very moment Bruce knew that despite all of the efforts he made, he lost.

He turned around, slow and stoic, just to look at the man of his nightmares standing in the doorway, a gun in his hand. Ross seemed to be very angry, but pleased with himself, malice dripping from every word, with so much hate in his eyes towards Bruce, the doctor never could understand. His nose was still bleeding from the hit he received earlier, blood dripping down from his chin, making his snarl even darker.

"Just to be sure, doctor, your friend is connected to a system right now, wich is equipped with a special drug. A drug which was developed against a creature like him- not from Earth."

"He is not a creature, general." Even with trembling body and voice, he placed himself between the threat and his teammate, his friend. "He is a god!"

"Whatever he may be, Dr. Banner, he is completely at my mercy. If I push this little button here" He lifted his other hand which held a small object, looking like a remote control. "Your friend will die."

A moment passed in silence, and Bruce just looked into the eyes which held such a crazy glare with an unreadable expression. It was Ross again, who started to speak.

"Don’t you agree with me, Dr. Banner? How can he be a god, if he can die? What is the name of a man, who can kill him?"

"It is not immortality, which makes him a god." Bruce said, and shook his head a little, as if he were slightly disappointed in one of his students. "It’s the way he has so much power, and yet he knows when to use it, and when to not. He is noble, and gentle, and caring, and so strong, you will never be."

This is why it’s so damn easy to love him!- He realized, and almost laughed, that it was just now he did that.

Ross’s lips curled into a a threatening snarl.

"It’s so touching to see this incredible faith from a monster you are. But still, big words or not, you only have two options left. You can transform into that creature and kill me, but before you can reach me, I’ll have time to kill your god there. The other however, it will just end with one death. Yours. I've grown tired of chasing you around. I want to finish this, right here, right now." There was a pause now, the man panting heavily, an unhealthy gleam in his eyes. "I know you let your team know where you are. If you decide to die, I will let him live and your friends can help him. Dr. Banner, I advise you to decide now. I don’t have all the time in the world!"

"And how do you plan to kill me?"

The man lowered his gun and pulled a syringe out of his pocket. Bruce arched one of his eyebrows.

"A lethal injection?"

Ross laughed.

"More or less. It is a drug developed for a special case. It’s in an experimental phase, though."

"And how does it work?" He had to stall for time, maybe they had a chance, if the team arrives...

Ross’s grin grew wider.

"It suppresses the other guy." Bruce felt his heart skip a beat. "After injected, you won’t be able to transform, you won’t be able to heal, basically, you will be just like you were before. Temporarily, but I will have enough time to..." And the general raised the gun a little.

"Execution by shooting, I guess." Bruce noddedd. But suddenly, a voice so weak, but even more desperate interrupted them.

"Bruce...! No!"

Bruce turned around so fast the wound on his neck started bleeding again. Thor was awake, struggling against the drug dragging him down. His eyes hazy with pain and tears, body tensed in agony, he was begging both with words and silence, not to choose death.

"Please, I beg you, I’m not worth it!"

They were staring at each other, seconds passing by with emotions too raw to frame. There was a beeping sound and the general snapped at them.

"They are almost here, say something, or God help me, I’ll push this button! Do you want him to die? If he means anything to you..."

Bruce turned back slowly, ignoring the weak protests coming from his friend.

"If he means...? My team... my friends... they mean the world to me..."

The other man huffed and handled him the syringe, then quickly stepped back and aimed the gun at him. Bruce almost smiled, even with him fully defeated, Ross was too afraid to come too near...

"No!!!" Thor cried out, loud and in despair, as he reached for the exposed, throbbing veins of his neck and injected the fluid in them. For a moment, nothing changed. Then he felt all of the anger, the struggling slowly slipping out of his mind. As the Hulk’s voice was fading away, he found himself whispering to him.

"Sorry, Big Guy...I know I said I’ll never give up again, that I will fight...But this...this is more than you or me, it’s more than us. I don’t want to die either...But I love him more."

Ross was eyeing him carefully, and when their gazes met again, he saw that all of the green left his irises, soft brown eyes were staring at him, tired and free.

The man's hands shook a little, as he aimed for the heart, and after what felt like eternity, he fired.

Bruce felt the hit on his chest with enough force to knock him over, and the last thing that crossed his mind was how could a little bullet be so strong to hurt this much.

**Author's Note:**

> Please, feel free to leave a comment!  
> Negative comments or comments of displeasure are also welcome, you can help me improve by pointing out my mistakes.


End file.
